New Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3 has unlocking bootloader

Samsung will sell a $600 version of the Galaxy S3. (Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Samsung gifts Android tinkerers with an (expensive) opportunity to buy a Verizon Galaxy S3 with an unlockable bootloader.

Now here’s an interesting twist to the story of the Samsung Galaxy S III (S3) on Verizon. Samsung has just announced that it’ll sell a version of its flagship Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone for Verizon that features an unlockable bootloader.

This means that the Galaxy S III Developer Edition, as its called, will open the door for developers and enthusiasts to tinker around on their phones, as in to install custom ROMs. Verizon’s version of the Galaxy S3 is the only one whose bootloader isn’t unlockable by default; phone owners can unlock the GS3 on Sprint, T-Mobile, and AT&T, for instance, if they choose.

The liberty to customize the phone comes at a price: $600 when it’s ready for purchasing, and only when purchased directly from Samsung’s site. This is the same price as a 16GB off-contract GS3 from Verizon’s own site.

The announcement comes at a curious time, two days before Verizon’s (delayed) GS3 sale date, but well after the first wave of enthusiasts were able to place their preorders online.